The effect of destination source credibility on tourist environmentally responsible behavior: an application of stimulus-organism-response theory

Abstract

A lack of credibility in the tourism sector is becoming a social and environmental concern.This article argues that destination source credibility as a destination-level stimulus can have significant influences on tourist environmentally responsible behavior (TERB). Based on the stimulus-organism-response theory, this paper developed an integrated model of the relationship between destination source credibility and TERB, with destination image (cognitive and affective) and place attachment as mediators. Three sets of survey data were collected at a Chinese national wetland park (N=451), a world heritage cultural landscape site (N=453), and a world cultural heritage site (N=450). The serial multiple mediation model was tested through combining bootstrapping and Bayesian approaches. Results indicated that destination source credibility enhanced tourists' cognitive and affective image, place attachment, and TERB. In addition, the effect of destination source credibility on TERB was partially and sequentially mediated by (cognitive and then affective) destination image and place attachment, among which place attachment emerged as the most powerful mediator.Robustness of these findings was confirmed across different destination types. Theoretical contribution and practical implication for sustainable destination management are discussed.

Linking Perceived Environmental CSR to Residents’ Environmental Citizenship Behavior in Rural Tourism: The Mediating Role of Resident–Environment Relationship Quality

“…More importantly, this empirical effort indicates a direct pathway from the stimulus (i.e., residents’ perceived ECSR) to the response (residents’ environmental citizenship behavior) and indirect routes through the mediation of resident-environment relationship quality variables (i.e., environmental identification and environmental commitment). The findings of this research further validate the parsimony and robustness of the SOR model through its application in the rural destination context, [ 33 , 35 ]. In summary, this research enriches the literature on the antecedents of environmental citizenship behavior and offers a novel perspective for understanding environmental citizenship behavior in the tourism context [ 17 ].…”

“…Specifically, the perceived social and physical stimuli facilitate evoke people’s cognitive and emotional processes, which thereby trigger their behavioral responses [ 33 ]. The SOR model, along with its parsimonious and robust nature, has been widely applied and validated in effectively predicting individual behavior in multiple contexts, such as consumer behavior, tourists’ environmental behavior and, recently, environmental citizenship behavior [ 11 , 34 , 35 ]. Therefore, our research employed the SOR model to investigate how perceived ECSR (Stimulus) influences residents’ environmental citizenship behavior (Response) through the mediation of resident-environment relationship quality (Organism) in rural destinations.…”

“…Response in the SOR paradigm involves eventual outcomes or behavior [ 35 ]. Based on the previously defined concept of tourists’ environmental citizenship behavior, environmental citizenship behavior, as the response in the conceptual model of this research, refers to residents’ voluntary behavior for the purpose of improving the destination environment [ 15 ].…”

Extending the Theory of Planned Behavior with the Self-Congruity Theory to Predict Tourists’ Pro-Environmental Behavioral Intentions: A Two-Case Study of Heritage Tourism

“…This highlights the prominent role of tourists' pro-environmental behaviors in the sustainability of destination environments [16,17]. Therefore, it is of considerable significance to cultivate and improve tourists' pro-environmental behaviors [18,19], as well as to enhance the sustainable use and management of land heritage [15].…”

Impact of Situational Environmental Education on Tourist Behavior—A Case Study of Water Culture Ecological Park in China

“…The basic assumption of NAT’s theory is that if people feel morally obligated to help others in a given situation, that behavior is known as an activated personal norm. After Thøgersen’s research [ 55 ], many researchers have applied NAT to explain behavior that is important to the environment and have achieved promising results showing that pro-environmental behavior is actually influenced by NAT variables [ 56 , 57 ]. In comparison to TPB, NAT focuses strongly on the moral drivers of pro-environmental behavior and ignores the non-moral motivations that TPB would be captured.…”